White Horse
by Soul-of-Pure-Silver
Summary: This is a story about Mary and Joey. It's kind of like my version of Another Cinderella Story. Plz read and review!
1. Chapter 1

**In the story, Mary's living with her dad, because I didn't really want Dominique in it, and we already know that Mary's mom died when she was young, but we don't know anything about her dad.**

My name is Mary Santiago. I could try and tell you all about me, but I think that would take to long, so I'm just going to tell you about my first day of kindergarten. That would about sum me up. Which is actually quite sad, if you think about it.

***

It started like anyone's first day of kindergarten, so I won't bore you with the details. Around snack time, a girl with two little blond pigtails walked up to me. This is the first thing she said to me. "What are you eating? It's so… plain."

Well, I was just eating normal crackers, and I thought they were okay. I remember I stuttered at her, "My… my mommy says they're good for you."

She shook her head at me. "What's your name?"

"It's Mary."

"Hmm… Mary… that's pretty plain to."

"Well… What's your name?"

"My name? It's Jeanette. There's nothing plain about Jeanette, not like Mary. But I guess you can't change your name? To something like… Marguerite?"

I quickly shook my head.

"I guess we'll just have to stick with plain Mary then."

***

That day I became, not exactly friends, but something close to it, with Jeanette.

I didn't really make any other friends at school, but that day I met my new neighbor, Lena. She and I became best friends, and we stayed best friends until the summer before high school. She moved to Italy. We still kept in touch with e-mail, and a rare phone call. The day she left was one of the saddest days of my life.

It also left me entering high school with only one sort-of friend. We were actually more like… friendly acquaintances. Jeanette still tells me everything about me is plain, but I've gotten used to it.

***

The night before my first day of high school, I called Lena. We talked for a while before I told her I had to hang up.

"School, first thing in the morning. Yipee." I said unenthusiastically.

"I'm so sorry I can't be there with you Mary."

"Yeah, I wish you were here to, Len."

"All right, you have to go to bed. But… Be who you are, and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."

I smiled into the phone. It was something we did sometimes. We both knew just about every single Dr. Suess quote there was, and we told them to each other when we felt it was needed.

"It'll be okay, Mary, you'll see."

"Thanks, Lena. Goodnight."

**This is my first real story, so could you all review and tell me what you think? I would really appreciate it. Tell me if you think that I should continue, okay? Thank you!**


	2. Chapter 2

When I got up the next morning, I decided to walk to school. It took me an extra half hour, but it was better then spending ten minutes on the bus with Jeanette and her followers criticizing my every move. I wasn't in the mood for it. I needed some time alone.

"Bye Dad," I yelled as I was pulling on my jacket. "I'm leaving for school now."

"Bye honey, have fun," he yelled back, he was still upstairs.

I shut the door and started walking down the path to the sidewalk. I could have taken my skateboard, but I didn't really feel like it.

I started the long walk to school, lost in my own little world. I liked to imagine myself in a different life, since nothing ever really happened to me.

My head was down and my hands were in my pockets. I wasn't really paying attention to what was happening around me, which is probably the reason why I was caught completely off guard when a football landed right in front of me, narrowly missing my head. I was even more surprised when something – a person – crashed into me from the back. I fell hard and fast, hitting my face on the sidewalk.

The person who had hit me got up. I was still lying on the sidewalk.

"Oh my god, I didn't see you. Are you hurt?"

I slowly opened my eyes.

"I'm so sorry, I wasn't looking. Are you okay?"

It was a boy. He looked like he was about my age, maybe a bit older.

I sat up carefully. "Yeah, I think so."

"Here." He reached down and pulled me up.

"Thanks." I winced. "That's gonna leave a mark."

"I am so sorry; I wasn't watching where I was going. Me and my friend-" he glanced behind him and scowled, "my cowardly friend who ran away without seeing if you were okay, were playing catch with the football. I'm so sorry I ran into you."

I looked up at him and my breath caught in my throat. He had the most beautiful eyes. And he really did look sorry. I hadn't even gotten to school yet, but I was pretty sure that he had to be one of the hottest guys there.

I smiled a bit at him. "That-that's okay. I'm fine."

He looked really relieved. "That's good. That's really good." Then he grinned at me. "Hi, I'm Joey Parker."

I stared at his face for a few seconds, admiring how the smile just lit it up, before I remembered that I was supposed to be introducing myself. "M-Mary Santiago."

"Well, hello, Mary Santiago, nice to meet you. I suppose you're walking to school?"

I nodded.

"Would you," he hesitated, "mind if I walked with you?"

I shook my head. "No, not at all."

"Great." He grinned at me, and I grinned back. Then I winced a bit and put a hand to my cheek. I could already feel the bruise forming on my face.

Joey instantly became worried again. "Are you sure you're okay? Let me see."

He lifted his hand and gently brushed my cheek. It hurt a bit, but I barely noticed. His hand was so gentle, I wished that he didn't ever have to let it drop. Then I mentally gave myself a shake. Get a grip, Mary, I told myself sternly. You just met him, and I highly doubt he likes you. He's just being friendly after smashing you to the ground.

He bent down and started picking up my bag and all the things that had fallen out of it. By the time I reached to help him, he was already done.

He held my bag out to me. "Let my just go get my bag, okay?" he asked.

I nodded and took my bag from him.

He ran inside, and half a minute later, came back with a schoolbag slung over one shoulder.

We started walking. I wanted to say something, but what? I didn't want to say something stupid, but I couldn't think of anything to say that wouldn't make me look like an idiot.

He glanced at me. "You know, you're really graceful, the way you move."

I looked at him, surprised by the randomness of what he had just said. "Umm… thank you?"

He laughed. "Sorry. It's just a habit I have. I was always told that I should say when I thought something was nice, because a lot of people don't say anything. Someone has to say it, so why not me?" He suddenly looked worried. "I didn't offend you, did I?"

"No, no, not at all. You just… caught me by surprise."

"Are you a dancer or something?"

I looked at him carefully, trying to figure out if he was really curious, or if he was going to laugh at me like every one else. "I- sort of," I said cautiously. "I like dancing, but it's just a hobby. I like it."

"Cool. I'll bet you're awesome!"

"Th-thanks." I wasn't used to getting so many compliments.

I looked at him. He seemed like a really nice guy, and he actually didn't seem to mind hanging around with me. I was busy staring at his face, which is probably why I didn't notice the huge gap in the sidewalk.

"Whaa-" Suddenly the pavement was rushing up to my face. The fact that I was falling didn't even register before a pair of strong arms caught me.

Then I was looking up at Joey Parker.

"You okay?" he breathed out.

"Yeah," I whispered back. I kept staring into his eyes, and he stared back. An eternity passed before he seemed to snap out of it. He gently stood me back on my feet.

"We should keep walking to school." He said awkwardly, putting his hands in his pockets and looking at the ground.

"Y-yeah." I ran my hand through my hair.

We both started walking again, but I didn't look at him this time. How embarrassing! I just met him five minutes ago, and I still managed to fall twice.

We got to school. He turned to me in the hall.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around Mary."

"Yeah, bye Joey. It-it was nice meeting you."

He smiled at me, then turned around and started walking away. He waved over his shoulder at me and said, "Don't kill yourself."

I waved back at him and waited until he was out of sight before I groaned and banged my head on a nearby locker.

Well, wasn't that _fun_, I thought to myself sarcastically. I totally humiliated myself. I sighed heavily and started walking to my locker, thinking _I hope the rest of the day will be at least a little bit better._ 'Cause if it isn't, I'm gonna die.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for everyone who gave a review. Sorry it took so long to update, but I spend the summer at my grandmother's house, and she doesn't have a computer, and when I come home, my dad is really strict about me going on the computer, so I often can't write anything, which really sucks.**

I sighed in relief when the bell finally rang, signaling the end of the day. I jumped out of my seat and shoved all my stuff in my bag. Then I practically ran out the door. I got my stuff out of my locker and had started walking home before half the school had left their classrooms. I only slowed down when I turned a corner and the school was out of sight.

I always ran out of school. Mostly because I don't like being laughed at, for there was always someone who will make a joke at my expense, but also because I don't like the feeling of being ignored, which is what the rest of the school does. I preferred being ignored to being laughed at, but I still try to avoid them both.

Surprisingly, my day hadn't been awful, and I only had one really horrible teacher. I was also really happy, because Joey's in my math, science, and history class, but I don't think he noticed. He also has gym at the same time as me, so even though it's all girls, we'll have a class with them once in a while.

When I got home, I found a note on the counter. _Mary, I'm going to be late, something came up at work. I hope you enjoyed your first day of school. Don't wait up for me. Dad._ I sighed and put it down. My dad was always working late, so most of the time I was home alone.

Since we weren't getting any homework yet, I decided to take a walk. I'd been out for half an hour before I realized that I had unconsciously walked past Joey's house three times. As soon as I realized this, I turned around and walked in the opposite direction.

I passed my house, but I didn't want to go in yet, so I continued down the sidewalk. It was getting cold and I was starting to wish that I had brought a jacket. I rubbed my arms.

I had just started shivering when I turned a corner and slammed into somebody.

He caught me before I fell, and I opened my eyes.

Oh. My. God. I had just collided with Joey Parker. Again.

He was smiling at me. "We should really stop meeting like this."

I grimaced. "Yeah, we should."

He let go of me and took a step back. "So… Are you going anywhere specific right now? 'Cause if you're not, we could, you now, walk around aimlessly together.

I quickly nodded and said, "Yeah, okay," But inside I was shrieking and jumping up and down. I had actually been about to turn around and go home, but there was no way I was going to tell Joey that.

After a few minutes, Joey said, "Oh yeah, I wanted to ask you after school, but I couldn't find you. How's your face?"

"How's my face?"

"I mean, from when you hit the sidewalk this morning."

"Oh. It's fine. Thanks for asking." He had to be the most polite boy on Earth.

"No problem. Hey, you're shivering! Here, take my coat." I tried to refuse, but he just draped it over my shoulders.

I smiled a bit at him. "Thanks."

In my mind, it was official. He was _definitely_ the nicest guy on this planet.

We walked on in silence, but it wasn't an awkward silence, it was a comfortable silence.

Suddenly his phone rang. I jumped a bit at the sudden noise. He answered it.

"Hello? …I went for a walk …No. Sure thing, Mom. Bye."

He snapped his cell shut and looked at me apologetically. "I'm sorry, Mary, but I have to go home."

"Oh, it's okay. Here." I started to hand him back his jacket, but he stopped me.

"Keep it," he said. "I don't want you to get sick on your way home."

"Oh. Um, thanks."

He smiled at me and started walking away. "See you at school."

I smiled at him. "Yeah."

I was still standing there when he had disappeared around the corner.

I hugged myself dreamily and thought over and over, _He lent me his coat, he lent me his coat, he lent me his coat…_

I walked home and let myself in. My dad still wasn't home, so I walked up to my room and changed into my pajamas. I draped Joey's coat over my desk chair.

I got under the covers and smiled a bit. Okay. So today wasn't _that_ bad…


	4. Chapter 4

A shrill ringing broke through the fog in my head and woke me up the next morning. Yawning, I opened my eyes and sat up. I shut my alarm off and rested my head against the headboard, smiling wistfully to myself. I had had the most wonderful dream. Surprisingly, I remembered it clearly. Usually I could only remember little bits and pieces of my dreams.

Anyways, in the dream, I had crashed into a really cute boy named Joey Parker on my way to school. I had embarrassed myself multiple times in front of him throughout the day. Then, after I got home, I was taking a walk and I literally ran into him, again. Then he gave me his coat to wear home, just like the gentlemen do in the old fashioned movies.

I sighed to myself, and was about to start trying to forget about it, when my gaze landed on a black leather jacket hanging over my desk chair. I froze. That wasn't my jacket. In fact, that looked a lot like _his_ jacket…

_Holy shoot!_ I nearly fell out of bed as I realized it hadn't been a dream. I lifted my hand, poked at my left cheek, and winced. Nope. That bruise was definitely real. Which means that…

_Oh!_ I shot out of bed. I was going to see Joey at school! As soon as the thought registered in my mind, I stopped and closed my eyes. _Deep breaths, Mary. Don't get your hopes up. You don't know that he actually likes you. He was nice to you yesterday, but maybe he's just super polite to every one._

Okay. I opened my eyes and murmured, "I'll just play it cool and not act like a freak." Then I silently groaned to myself. _Oh, great. I just met the guy yesterday, and already he's driving me crazy._

I looked at my clock and realized that if I kept standing around, I was going to be late. I quickly dressed for school, grabbed my bag and Joey's jacket, and ran downstairs. Dad already left for work, so I guessed I was later than I thought.

I grabbed an apple and practically sprinted out the door. Outside, the ominous grey sky rumbled, and a blast of cold air hit me. It was freezing! I shivered, then slipped Joey's jacket on over my own sweater. 

I rushed on and saw the bus turning around the corner. _Aww, man. Just missed it._ Then I spun around and sprinted back inside the house to grab my skateboard. I skated to school as fast as I could, and when I finally got there, panting, I spotted Joey leaning against the wall next to the door.

I slowed down, hesitating. He saw me and waved. _Okay, he's already seen me. Now I can't run around to the back entrance. Great._ Not knowing if I meant it or not, I put my smile on my face and hoped that in my rush to get out of the house, I had managed to look half-way decent.

That reminded me. How come everyone's hanging around outside? Isn't class starting?

"Hey, Mary."

"Uh, hi!"

I saw him look at my clothes, and I looked down too and remembered I was wearing his jacket. "Oh! Here, you can have your jacket back." I started shrugging it off, but he shook his head.

"No. It's supposed to be chilly today. Keep it. I've got another one." He pulled at his sleeve to indicate the green hoodie he was wearing.

"Well…"

He mock glared at me, and I caved. "Okay, fine."

He smiled. "Good."

He reached out and gently tucked a stray piece of hair that had fallen in front of my face behind my ear. I stiffened in surprise. He pulled his hand back, and I saw his face redden.

I looked around me at all the students lounging around on the front field. Scrambling to save the moment, I asked "Um, so, uh, how come everyone's still outside?"

I saw him shoot me a grateful look for not making a big deal out of it before he answered. "Because there's still twenty minutes until homeroom."

"Twenty – minutes?"

"Uh-huh. Twenty minutes."

I groaned. "Ugh! I rushed all that way for nothing!"

He grinned at that. "Well, you got your daily exercise. …Or something like that."

I laughed, and then we both fell silent at the exact same time. _Ugh,_ I thought to myself, _I hate when that happens. _

"I know what you mean."

"Huh?"

"I don't really like random awkward silences either."

"Oh," I blushed. "Did I say that out loud?"

"Yeah." _He is so totally laughing at me! And school hasn't even started yet! Please don't let this be a sign! Please!_ I mentally begged.

"It's okay. I do that all the time. My brother thinks I'm insane." He said that so matter-of-factly that I had to giggle. _Guess he wasn't laughing at me. Gosh, he's such a nice guy…_

I mentally shook myself out of it. "You have a brother?"

He nodded. "Yeah, an older brother and a younger sister. What about you? Do you have siblings?"

I shook my head. "I'm an only child."

"Hmm… Do you… ever get lonely?"

"Sometimes." I shrugged. "But I can't really do anything about it, so…" I trailed off, unsure of how to end the sentence.

"Well, if you ever get to lonely, you can always come over to my house, if you want."

"Really?!" I almost squealed, but managed to stop myself. No one had ever invited me over to their house, except for Lena. He nodded, and I managed to say, "Uh, yeah, I'd like that a lot. Thank you!"

He waved a hand at me. "Oh, it's no problem. Come over any time during the week. And you know what? I'll leave a note in the letterbox for you to say when we won't be home." Then he hesitated. "Or is that, like, to much?"

"Oh, no!" I vigorously shook my head a few times for emphasis, and then I smiled at him. "It sounds great." I said softly, looking up at him.

He relaxed and smiled. "Well, great! Hey, you wanna come over today? After school?" I must have had a really shocked expression on my face, because he hastily added, "only if you're, you know, not busy or anything. And my sister'll be home to. So you'll have to be mentally prepared to face her. And…" he kept on babbling, and I held up a hand.

"It sounds wonderful." I said honestly.

A smile broke over his face, and the day suddenly seemed brighter. I knew right then and there that I would do almost anything to see that smile again.

"So I'll meet you in the front foyer after school ends?"

"Yeah, okay." Just then, the bell rang, and everyone started hurrying inside.

He started stepping backwards towards the door. "So I'll see you after school," He called out, waving at me.

"Yeah," I answered, waving back. "See you later," I whispered to myself.

When he was out of sight, I hugged myself gleefully. _EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!_ was pretty much the only thought that crossed my mind for several minutes, before I realized that I was the only one left outside.

I sighed when I realized this, and said to myself, "Here we go." Then I sprinted to my locker with the universal I'm-late-and-so-dead-and-I-know-it-but-I'm-gonna-try-to-get-to-class-on-time-anyways look on her face. And in the end I didn't get in trouble because my first period teacher was absent and the substitute was late.

I sat down at my desk. Resting my head in my arms, I grinned so hard my face hurt.

_I'm going to Joey's house! I can't wait for school to end!_


	5. Chapter 5

I sat in my seat, anxiously fidgeting and sneaking glances at the clock approximately every 7 seconds. There was still twenty minutes to the bell, which was really bad, because it gave me time to think, which, in turn, gave me time to panic.

_Oh my gosh, what was I thinking! I'm going to Joey's house! Which I guess isn't really bad, I mean, it's awesome, but what if he spends some time with me and suddenly realizes he actually hates me?! …Oh no, I said I meet him in the front foyer!_

That thought definitely stopped my semi-hysterical rambling. I couldn't go to the foyer! I always avoided it. Well, okay, most people tended to avoid it, but me especially. That's where all the 'cool' kids met and hung out.

And needless to say, I was not, in any way, a 'cool' kid. I was probably one of the lowest people on the social ladder at this school. You didn't really get much lower than me.

But I had to go. I was meeting Joey there. I couldn't have him think that I had stood him up. Mentally, I weighed my options. Humiliated in front of everybody who's anybody, or go on normally and potentially never speak to Joey Parker again.

When the bell finally rang, I still hadn't decided, but I was out of time. I was still debating on the way to my locker. Still debating while I packed my bag. Still debating while I slowly walked down the hall that led to 'the foyer'. I had never walked down the hall during a school day. I only went when the school was deserted.

I hesitated right before I crossed the invisible line that separated it from the rest of the school. But you can't stop in the middle of a hallway during rush hour for more then six seconds without being shoved out of the way and/or trampled, so, taking a deep breath, I crossed the line.

As soon as I had clearly crossed it on purpose, instead of accidentally stumbled over it, I could feel everyone's eyes on me. Not lifting my head, I resisted the urge to spin around and run out, and instead quickly stepped over to the least crowded corner.

Anxiously, without meeting anyone's eyes, I kept a constant watch on the entrances, praying that Joey hadn't gotten caught up in class. Or worse, forgotten. Or even worse then that, decided not to come. I felt like I was going to throw up or pass out at the same time.

Then he walked in, and it was like the sun had come out from behind a cloud, which sounds totally cliché, but I don't really care because it's true. That's actually what it felt like. Joey hadn't completely ditched me, I hadn't been eaten alive by the other popular people, and I was going to be the first 'loser' (by their standards) to have survived the foyer without suffering from a mental breakdown.

Joey spotted me, and started walking over, with that really cute smile on his face. That was when my happy feeling started ebbing away. I was back to feeling nauseous by the time he reached me.

What if Joey had only asked me here so they could set me up for some school wide humiliation? He didn't seem like that type of guy, but what if he was just a really good actor, good enough to fool me? Why did he even ask me to meet him hear, anyways? Doesn't he know this is cool person territory?

"Hi," he said, his face cheerful. "I'm glad you decided to come." He sounded sincere. "Hey," his expression changed to concerned. "You okay? You look like you're gonna be sick."

I struggled to get the words out of my mouth. "Um, it's just, uh, hot, in here. Can we go outside now?" I was eager to get away from the prying eyes that were staring at me and Joey incredulously.

His face melted into a smile. "Sure." He put his arm around my shoulder and led me towards the front entrance. He opened the door and held it, motioning for me to go first. I mumbled my thanks as I slipped past him, and sighed in relief when he let it swing shut behind him, blocking everyone else's view.

I was so not looking forward to coming back to school. With my luck, every one will have heard, and the biggest piece of gossip will be how me and Joey were talking to each other, and then left together. But maybe someone will get pregnant or something equally as scandalous in this town, and I won't be the center of attention. I mentally groaned at my pathetic attempts to kid myself. _Yeah, right. It is not gonna happen._

Me and Joey started down the sidewalk, towards the parking lot and his car, which he had driven to school today.

"You sure you feel okay?" he asked me, looking at my face carefully.

Now that we were out of the foyer, I felt fine. More then fine, since he was with me. "Yeah," I grinned. It seemed to reassure him, and he grinned back.

He unlocked his car and opened the passenger door for me. He made a sweeping bow and said in a stiff british accent, "Your ride, m'lady."

I giggled at that, I mean, it wasn't possible not to giggle, and lifted my chin regally. I strutted over to the door, but then the laughter overtook me and I just managed to plop myself onto the seat before I fell. Joey chuckled and closed the door before walking over to the driver's side and getting in.

The ride to his house was surprisingly easy. There were no awkward pauses, like I feared there'd be, and it was a lot of fun. I don't think I stopped laughing at all.

He helped me out of the car like a true gentleman, again, and we walked up his front walk to the door. He dug his keys out of his bag and unlocked the door.

Stepping in and dropping his bag to the floor, he yelled, "Hey Carrie! I'm home!" When there was know reply, he looked kind of puzzled. "Huh. Wonder where she is." He waved me into the house. "Come on in. you can just leave bag over there." He indicated a spot on the floor. Kicked off his shoes, he started walking down the hall, motioning for me to follow.

I slipped my shoes off, and placed my bag on the floor before hurrying after him. I was just about to enter the kitchen when it hit me. _I'm in Joey's house… _I paused mid step, the butterflies back in my stomach. _Well, there's no turning back now_, I thought, as I forced down a mini panic attack. I took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen.


	6. Chapter 6

I walked in, and saw Joey reading a note that was taped to the fridge. He glanced over his shoulder and smiled at me. I had to bite my lip to keep myself from jumping up and down and squealing like a little girl.

"Carrie says she's sleeping over at a friend's house," he told me, gesturing to the note.

"Oh, um, okay." Now that I was here, I really had no idea of what we were going to do.

"Um…" Joey rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "So…"

It wasn't completely awkward yet, probably because the giddiness from the car ride hadn't worn of yet, and I wanted to keep it that way. I desperately wracked my brain for something to do, and then I saw the mini-playground in his backyard. It wasn't one of those cheap plastic kiddie ones, it was exactly like the ones you find in parks, all metal and sturdy-looking.

Joey must have seen my face light up, because he turned around to see what I was looking at. He looked back at my face, and hesitantly asked, "Do you want to go play in the playground? Um, I know we're a bit, uh, old for it, but it's still pretty fun, and-"

He stopped talking when he saw that I was nodding empathetically. I know it's childish, but I _love_ swing sets. Like, _love_ them. I could sit on a swing for hours, going as high as I could, and then just slowly swaying back and forth. No matter how much I begged, my dad never let me get a swing set in the back yard, and I always felt awkward when I went to the playground.

"Well okay then." He opened the door and gestured for me to go first. My eyes were shining as I practically skipped through. I ran straight for the closest swing, and was already high in the air by the time Joey caught up. It felt good to be swinging free.

My hair was whipping around my face, and I was laughing. At some point, he started laughing along with me. Just hearing that sound made my heart soar. I felt like my heart was filled to the brim with happiness.

I glanced at him a few times, and each time he was smiling warmly back at me. Eventually, I slowed to a stop, and I realized that he'd been still for a while. I looked over at him and saw that he was watching me, leaning his elbows on his knees, propping his head up. Instantly, I felt my face turn red.

"Oh no, please don't get embarrassed!" He straightened up, his own face coloring to match mine. "I'm sorry, it's just…" he trailed off. "You looked so happy! I couldn't help it! Mary, I'm sorry, I was just-"

I cut him off. "It's fine." I said, smiling shyly at him.

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank you, I really didn't mean to be a creeper or anything, it's just…," he paused again, and I cocked my head.

"Just what?" I asked curiously. He looked at me and seemed to be debating whether or not to tell me. "Please?" I prodded.

He nodded his head. "Well, I was just thinking that you looked so…," he paused, searching for the right word. "So happy, so carefree and innocent. People should look like that more often. Like they're just… happy to be alive." He bit his lip and gave a little nervous laugh. "I'm sorry, that was awkward, wasn't it." He said guiltily.

"It's fine." Then, before I could actually think about what I was saying, I said, "I like hearing what you think. Not many people are honest like that. I think it's very sweet." And then, when my brain caught up to my mouth, I cringed. I should really stop it with the word vomit.

Then I realized that he wasn't on the floor laughing at me. "That was cute," he told me, "You, like, blushed, and with the swing, and your hair, and, well…" he was stumbling over his words. "I mean the swinging…"

He looked into my eyes, and my breath caught in my throat. "It was beautiful," he trailed off again and looked at me "You're beautiful," he breathed.

I couldn't believe my ears. I saw him bite his lip as he realized what he said. I could feel a smile stretching across my face, and I can honestly say that I don't think that I have ever been happier in my life.

Still grinning – I was probably starting to look like the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland – I stood up off the swing.

Joey stood up too, looking unsure, and then I hugged him. I hugged Joey Parker. I felt him smile into my hair, and then he hugged me back. Joey Parker was _hugging me back_!

Then he murmured, "You are beautiful, Mary" and my life was complete.


End file.
